By: Reshma Dalal, Creative Director At Tara and I
Your wardrobe is a self-expression of who you are, much like an artist’s palette and brush strokes. It begins at one place, then grows and evolves at every stage and age, and eventually becomes a metaphor for who we are. Like everything else in our life, it needs thought, care with a little pruning now. I like to see fashion as a thinking person’s expression that is made of creative and intelligent choices.
Slow conscious edits to one’s wardrobe are de rigueur from time to time. While clothes give us inherent joy, it is critical today to ensure we restrict our carbon footprint and that we consciously choose to patronize ethically sourced, bio-degradable, natural garments so we can be responsible citizens. Top brands across the world including many fast fashion high street brands are using this mantra today. Patronizing small independent brands, indigenous textiles that generate employment locally is another way to shop responsibly and consciously. To embrace slow fashion, it’s critical to differentiate between what you need and what you want. The idea should be to build a wardrobe hence before you purchase anything new, you need to have a good hard look through your closet and identify any gaps. Then, create your list of garments that need to fill the holes in your wardrobe, as well as other pieces that can add a fresh injection.
Quality over quantity, I have always believed in creating a wardrobe of ‘staples’ that are versatile, classic, and timeless. Be it a classic white shirt, the right pantsuit, an evergreen blazer, fitted blue jeans, or that dress that can take you from desk to dining al fresco. That will stay with you for life. The creativity lies in how you dress as you can dress it up to be formal or dress it down to be casual chic. Your styling can make your wardrobe uniquely yours just the way you want it to be.
While we often get tempted to follow a trend, and we absolutely should have fun and embrace contemporary inspiration, we shouldn’t veer from our wardrobe essentials and classics. Those that fit our body type and lifestyle are investments and almost become like your second skin. Seasons demand an edit too, lighter, breezier, or more breathable fabrics like crisp cotton, beautiful cotton voiles, and linens for the summer and heavier and more luxe fabrics like silk, satin, and wool work for the winters and you can dress it up or down by mixing and matching while accessorizing it with pearl studs or a gold chain or the bag of the season with simply red lips.
When I launched my brand tara & i I wanted to share my belief in contemporary, sharp, elevated classics that are versatile, transcend seasons, and can be worn over the years. Clothes that will stand the test of time and those that you can come back to at all ages. However, most importantly create fashion that makes you not just look good but also feel good.
